Karina Aviva (She/Her)

is a director of theatre and Opera, a movement specialist, and facilitator of educational and devising experiences currently based in London.

“The type of work I am interested in creating is often political, influenced or based in movement and physical theatre, and stems from authentic storytelling. My practice encourages the creation and impact of work to be guided and in harmony with the natural world or in revolt against societally constructed 'norms' that traditionally go unquestioned. Accessibility, inclusivity, and authenticity are at the core of my work and I am most propelled by characters or stories that cut through social prejudice to the power of truth.

As a Queer Female Indigenous migrant artist, the daughter of refugees, the sibling of brilliant Deaf/differently-abled humans, I have grown up in the intersection of multiple marginalised identifiers that have provided a lifetime of stories to tell and perspectives to investigate. My need to create original works stems from rarely finding spaces in the mainstream theatre industry that support or allow the diverse factors of my identity, and so carving out creative pathways has, at times, been more like plowing through heavy snow. What has been most exciting is meeting other artists to collaborate with or support through their own such plowing. My hope for the future is to build an expansive foundation to uplift unheard voices, to create spaces where tangible progress and healing can be part of the fabric of theatre making, and to develop healthier processes and environments for creators and audiences alike.”

Karina began training in classical ballet at the age of two and carried on serious ballet education and performance into her twenties. Alongside dance she became interested in theatre at a young age leading her to attend the University of the Arts in Philadelphia for her BFA education in Theatre Directing, Playwriting, and Production. It was at UARTS that she met and trained with the Artistic Director of NYC’s Actors’ Movement Studio Janice Orlandi. With Janice she trained in all levels of the Williamson movement technique and went on to assist her at NYU Atlantic as well as co-teaching in other institutions, specifically in Williamson’s Period Style movement and first level of the work (created as a three-year program to accompany the Meisner Technique). For a number of years, Karina was also fortunate enough to train directly with Lloyd Williamson himself, delving deeper into the technique and going through the teacher training process with him.

After her time at UARTS, she went on to study in Russia at the Moscow Art Theatre through the Eugene O’Neil Theatre Center where she had previously held an assistant director position in the prestigious Theatremakers program. Upon returning to the States she worked as a freelance artist and teacher for almost ten years before returning to Europe where she co-ran an experimental theatre company in Berlin and subsequently moved to London where she earned her MFA in Directing (with Distinction) from the University of Essex’s East 15 Acting School. Her Distinction was awarded for academic performance as well as thesis adaptation of Shakespeare’s The Rape of Lucrece.

Throughout Karina’s time in Europe she began to train with Mary Overlie who was the creator of the Six Viewpoints. The Six Viewpoints has become an essential part of her working methodology in her directing and choreographic works. Karina has been teaching The Six Viewpoints in the USA and UK at top tier graduate and undergraduate level Actor training institutions including FSU, Carnegie Mellon, and East 15. She will begin independently holding Viewpoints training in London starting Summer 2024.

Since earning her MFA, Karina has held residencies with several esteemed companies such as Frantic Assembly, Gecko, Tara Theatre and more. Most recently, she directed and devised an adaptation of The House of Bernarda Alba  titled “Needle, Thread, Whiplash” at her alma mater East 15 Acting School with their MFA Acting students, The Tempest at the Cambridge Shakespeare festival where she has been made an Associate Director of the company, and Miss Julie by Strindberg at FSU/ASOLO. Recently she also directed the opera Der Kaiser Von Atlantis at Carnegie Mellon and have been invited back to direct the opera Transformations as part of their 2024-2025 season.

Karina has recently finished her tenure as Visiting Professor of Movement at FSU’s ASOLO Conservatory for the 2023/2024 academic year and is returning to London for her upcoming devised production of Sin Eater at The Cockpit theatre in the 2024 Camden Fringe.